1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a pipe-cleaning device comprising a rotatable cutting head for cutting away material on the interior of a pipe, such as for example tree roots on the interior of a sewage pipe. The invention further relates to a cutting head mountable on a pipe-cleaning device and a drive for driving the cutting head of a pipe-cleaning device.
2. The Prior Art
From U.S. Pat. No. 5,713,093 a pipe-cleaning device is known which comprises a cutting head for cutting away material on the interior of a pipe, a body on which the cutting head is rotatably mounted and drive means using a pressurized liquid for driving the rotation of the cutting head with respect to the body. The cutting head is made up of rigid cutting elements extending throughout the diameter of the device and the body is circumferentially provided with rigid guide runners means for supporting the body on the interior of the pipe to be cleaned.
The pipe-cleaning device known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,713,093 has the disadvantage that it cannot be moved past certain obstructions which may occur in the interior of pipes. An example of such an obstruction is a subsidence of one pipe section with respect to an adjacent pipe section, which is for example common in sewage pipes. With the prior art device, there is a risk that the device comes to a standstill at such obstructions.
The pipe-cleaning device known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,713,093 further has the disadvantage that the cutting head is unsuitable for cutting away large obstructions.
Another disadvantage of the pipe-cleaning device known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,713,093 is that the amount of torque which can be developed for cutting away material from the interior of the pipe remains limited.
It is a first aim of the present invention to provide a pipe-cleaning device with which the risk that the device comes to a standstill at obstructions can be reduced.
It is a second aim of the present invention to provide a cutting head for a pipe-cleaning device with improved cutting action.
It is a third aim of the present invention to provide a drive for driving the rotation of a cutting head of a pipe-cleaning device with which the developed amount of torque can be increased.